Lens-cutting machine.



W. S. ESSICK.

LENS CUTTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT.29, 1914.

1 11 3 55 Patented M01313, 1915.

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LENS CUTTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT-29,1914.

Patented Apr. 13, 1915.

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WALTER S. ESSICK, READING, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR T STANDARD OPTICAL COMPANY OF GENEVA, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION 0'5 YORK.

LENS-CUTTING MACHINE.

master.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr, 13, 1915.

I Application filed September 29, 191%. Serial No. 864,032.

To old whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, VALTER S. EssicK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Reading, in the county of Berks and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Lens-Cutting Machines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates particularly to that class of machines that are employed in cutting glass plates, and is especially applicable to machines designed for cutting lens blanks from which spectacle and eye-glass lenses are made.

It is well known that in cutting the contour of the lens blank upon the glass plate, it is highly essential to prevent the cutter from retraversing the cut path, for the reason that the cutting point rapidly deteriorates when forced into contact with the grit produced by the cutting operation.

The principal objects of my invention are to provide a lens blank forming machine, with means to limit the relative movement of the lens blank plate and the cutter to a complete cycle of operation, and to provide means actuated by the operator in effecting the operation of themachine, to positively determine the starting and stopping position of the mechanism.

Other objects of my invention are to provide a lens blank forming machine, with automatic stopping mechanism so con structed and arranged that when released by the operator at the completion of each operation the cooperative parts will unlock and reset for the succeeding operation.

Specifically stated my invention comprehends an-operating handle having a plunger normally retracted by spring pressure and arranged to be extended by the operator, at pivoted detent normally spring pressed into the longitudinal path of said plunger and disposed in the rotary path of said plunger when extended by the. operator.

My invention also includes all of the various novel features of construction and arrangement as hereinafter more definitely specified.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevational view of a lens cutting machine embodying a convenient form of my invention. Fig. 2, is a side elevational view of the machine shown in-Figj 1. Fig. 3, is a plan view of said machine. Fig. 4,

is a fragmentary vertical sectional View taken centrally through the handle and stopping device showing the plunger in its extended position, stopped by the detent, and Fig. is a view similar to Fig. 4 showing the plunger retracted and the detent shifted into the longitudinal path of said plunger, and representing the starting postion of the mechanism.

In said figures the base 1 has the bearing 2 for the shaft 30f the lens blank plate sup: port comprising thesupportin-g pad at and the gear 5 upon which the lens blank plate 6 is carried. The lens blank plate supportis arranged to be elevated into operatrve position by the lever 7 which is pro- \'1d6d with. the operating handle 9 and which is pivoted at 10 on the pedestals 1l, and has the thrust bearing 12 upon which the end of the shaft 3 rests, the plate being shifted by gravity to the position shown in Figs. 1 and 2 when the handle 9 is released by the operator. The gear 5 is in toothed engagement with the pinion 13 whose shaft ii is journaled in the bearings 15, and 15 respectively in the base 1 and the super frame 17, which is supported by the column 19 rising from the base 1. The-shaft 14: also carries the pinion 20 which is in toothed engagement with the driving gear 21 whose shaft 22 is journalcd in the bearing 23 of the super frame 17, and carries the former Q-l upon which is mounted the stem 25 having the spring portion 26 and forming a spring finger 27 bearing upon the lens blank plate for holding it upon the supporting pad 6. The column 19 is provided with lugs 29 and ,30 which support the swinging frame 31 mounted to oscillate upon the pivot rod 39; said frame 31 carries the holder 33 for the cutter 35 against which the lens blank plate is forced as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, said cutter being adjustably secured in the holder 33 by the set screw 36.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 3, the frame 31 is provided with the stud 37 upon which is mounted the roller 39, arranged to traverse the edge of the former 24, which may be of any desired contour depending upon the contour of the lens it is desired to shape, and shown in Fig. 3 as elliptical in form. The roller 39 is maintained in contact with the former as by the spring 40 which is connected with the pivoted frame 31 by the chain 41, so that as the former 24; rotated hill ill

the cutter 35 will be caused to traverse an elliptical path upon the surface of the lens blank plate 6, when raised into contact therewith, due to the cotiperative rotation of said plate and the substantially linear path of the cutter as will be obvious.

- The operation of the machine is arranged to be manually effected by the handle which is rotatably mounted upon the tubular bushing 46 carried by the gear 21, and extends therethrough. Said handle is provided with a central stem, forming a plunger 47, which extends through saidbushing and has its projecting end t9 preferably reduced in diameter as best shown in Figs. 4 and 5, and extended below the under plane of the gear 21.

' As shown in Fig. the handle 45 and its plunger 4:? are normally upheld in the retracted position of said plunger by the spring 50 which is interposed between the I end of the bushing 46 and the inner wall of the annularrecess 18 in said handle. super frame 17 is extended laterally and forwardly to provide a housing 51 for the detent 52 which is pivotally mounted in the recess 53 in said housing upon the pintle 54:, and is normally forced, by the spring 55. against the post 56 which limits its range of movement. Said spring is disposed in the cylindrical recess 57 in the housing 51 and is held therein by the cover plate 59 secured to the housing by the screw 60. It may be here noted that the detent 52 has a limited range of movement, and that its upper edge is inclined to the horizontal, sloping downwardly toward the direction of movement of the handle 45 as shown by the arrows at the left in Figs. 4 and 5. Thus it will be readily seen that when the handle 45 is depressed by the operator in rotating the driving gear 21, the plunger 47 will be projected sutiiciently to engage the detent 52 at the end of its rotary movement, as shown in Fig. 4, and force it in opposition to the spring 55 until its abutment 62 enga es the wall of the recess 53 whereupon the urther rotation of the mechanism will be prevented. Upon the manual release of the handle 415 the spring 50 will withdraw the plunger 47 from the detent 52 and permit said detent to be forced by its spring 55 against the post 56, slightly beneath the plunger 47 and in its longitudinal path as shown in Fig. 5. It will be obvious that the handle may be started'in its rotary course from the precise rotary position in which it was stopped by the.

detent 52, for as the operator grasps the handle it will be forced down upon the detent 52, which has been shifted beneath it by the spring 55, and will readily ride down the inclined edge thereof. Similarly said handle will necessarily be stopped by said detent at the samepoint in its rotary movement, and consequently the cutter 35 will be The I forced to stop after making a complete ellipse or other figure which the former 2st maybe designed to produce.

I do not desire to limit my invention to the precise details of construction and arrangement herein set forth, as it is obvious that various modifications may be made therein without departing from the essential features of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus fully described my invention, I claim 1. In a machine of the class described. the combination of mechanism for relatively moving a blank and a cutter in coiiperative relation, with a movable detent, and a handle adapted to engage the detent for arrest ing their relative movement at the completion of the cycle of coiiperative actuation.

2. In a machine of the class described, the combination of means for relatively moving a blank and :1 cutter, in coiiperativc relation, comprising a handle adapted to be projected by the operator, and a detent in the path of the handle when projected, to arrest the relative movement of said blank and cutter at the termination of each cycle of operation.

3. In a machine of the class described, the combination of mechanism for relatively moving a blank and a. cutter in coiiperative relation, with means for insuring only a complete cycle of movement of such mechanism, comprising a plunger, arranged to traverse a circular path, a detent having a limited range of movement, against which said plunger is stopped in its rotary movement, and means for forcing said detent into the path of said plunger.

4. In a machine of the class described, the combination of a rotatable blank carrier, a cutter arranged to engage a blank on said carrier, a movable support for said cutter, means connected to rotate said blank carrier in operative engagement with said cut ter and to simultaneously move said cutter laterally with respect to the axis of rotation of said blank carrier, a projectable handle and a movable detent adapted to engage the projectable handle to stop said carrier upon the complete rotation of said blank.

5. In a machine of the class described, the combination of a rotatable blank carrier, a cutter arranged to engage a blank on said carrier, a pivoted support for said cutter, a former operative to move said cutter over the surface of said blank, means connected to simultaneously rotate said former and carrier, a detent and a projectable handle adapted to engage the detent to stop said carrier upon the completion of each rotation.

6. In a machine of the class described, the combination of a rotatable blank carrier, a cutter arranged to engage a blank on said carrier, a pivoted support for said cutter, a

former operative to move said cutter over the surface of said blank, means connected to simultaneously rotate said former and carrier, and a movable detent and a projectable handle operative to stop said carrier upon the completion of each rotation.

7. In a machine of the class described, the combination of a blank carrier, a cutter arranged to engage a. blank on said carrier, means connected to relatively move said blank carrier and cutter, and thereby produce a out upon said blank of the desired contour, and means including a movable detent operative to stop the relative move ments of said blank and cutter upon the complete cycle of the operation, and at the point of beginning of said out.

8. In a machine of the class described, the combination of a rotatable blank carrier, a

cutter arranged to engage a blank on said,

carrier, at pivoted support for said cutter, a former operative to move the point of said cutter over the surface of said blank, means arranged to raise and lower said carrier to present the blank into and out of contact with said cutter, a spring finger arranged to hold said blank on said carrier, means connected to effect the simultaneous rotation of said carrier and former, a handle by which such rotation may be manually produced, comprising a movable projection, and a detent operative to engage said projection to stop said carrier upon the complete rotation of said blank.

In a machine of the class described, the combination of a blank carrier, a cutter mounted to cooperate with a blank on said carrier, means connected to relatively move said blank carrier and cutter, a handle for effecting such movement, comprising a spring actuated plunger normally retracted, and arranged to be projected by the operator, and a detent disposed out of the path of said plunger when retracted and arranged to engage said plunger when projected, to stop the carrier upon the completion of each rotation.

10. In a. machine of the class described, the combination of a blank carrier, a cutter arranged to traverse said blank carrier, actuating mechanism operative to produce the relative movement of said blank carrier and cutter, and comprising a sprinp" plunger normally retracted and arranged to be manually projected, and a movable detent disposed out of the path of said plunger when retracted and arranged to arrest its movement when projected.

11. In a machine of the class described, the combination of means for relatively moving a blank and a cutter in cooperative relation, comprising a handle having a spring actuated plunger normally retracted, a spring actuated detent disposed out of the normal path of said plunger, and arranged to engage said plunger when. projected by the operator in the actuation of the machine, to stop the relative movement of the blank and cutter at the termination of each cycle of operation.

12. In a machine of the class described, a cutter, means for rotating the cutter, a projectable handle therefor, and a detent in the path of the handle when projected.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

' WALTER S. ESSEGK.

Witnesses:

CLARA E. YOUNG, En. A. KELLY. 

